Berry Blush Shampoo
by Prince-in-Disguise
Summary: Athrun, Cagalli, Lacus and Kira are just getting used to their normal lives after the war, when Pinkchan mysteriously disappears. Could pure, innocent Hallo mischief be the cause, or is there a much darker purpose behind the pink toy's disappearance?
1. Chapter 1: The Missing Hallo

**Author's Note:** The story is set shortly after the ending of Gundam SEED, so it takes place while Athrun, Cagalli, Kira and Lacus are still settling into their new lives after the war.

**Disclaimer: Gundam Seed and all its characters belong to their respective owners. **

* * *

**Berry Blush Shampoo**

It was a fairly cool summers day on the streets of Orb. A lazy breeze nudged the branches of the trees planted along the sidewalk as four friends strolled by, just enjoying life. Athrun smiled warmly at his three cheerful companions. Cagalli was assaulting Kira for the last bite of caramel ice cream left on his cone – she had finished hers long since – and Lacus was giggling softly at the scene while Kira struggled to defend his ice cream. It certainly was amazing, Athrun thought. Kira and Cagalli had only recently discovered that they were twins, but already they were behaving like regular siblings. Of course, Cagalli was convinced that she was the eldest of the pair. Athrun was not so sure that the bold girl was wrong about that. Athrun's wandering eyes met those of Lacus, PLANT's Pink Princess, as some on the Archangel had dubbed her.

Abruptly, he wondered how long the four of them would be able to stay in this carefree little world of theirs before reality kicked in. Cagalli would be appointed the new leader of Orb in a couple of days. Things were definitely going to change after that. He forced his lips to curve into a slight smile and did his best to force down a small quake of panic shaking his heart. He did not want things to change. He supposed that he was afraid of what fate might hand him next. He groped for the feeling of pure happiness he had been experiencing only a few seconds ago, but it was too far beyond his reach already.

Lacus sent him a reassuring smile. She seemed so confident. But Athrun did not think he was the only one who had doubts about the future. They all had to be feeling it to some degree. None of them spoke of it – voicing those feelings would make them too real. They were clinging to here and now, uncertain of what the future might bring.

"Earth to Athrun!" Cagalli sang out, and he realized that she was waving a hand in front of his face. He turned his eyes to hers and she grunted. "What planet are you on, Mars?"

"I was just thinking," he replied sincerely.

"You're sure thinking hard if you don't even notice that your ice cream's melting…" she pointed out, indicating the sticky mess of minty goo that was slithering down the side of the cone and onto Athrun's fingers. He stared wordlessly at the gunk that had once been a perfectly good ice cream. No sense in letting it go to waste, though.

"Want some?" he asked playfully. He was rewarded with a coy blush from the tough girl who hated acting her gender.

"You're changing the subject!" she spluttered, her hands balled into fists.

"Am I?" Another preciously bashful expression garlanded her features.

"Something's bothering you and I wanna know what!" Cagalli asserted finally. She was furious with him, and he could not imagine what he had done to provoke her. But that was just one of the things you had to love about Cagalli. He put on a disarming little smile for her. To his pleasant surprise, he found that it was evolving into a genuine grin. It was a talent of hers, turning his blues into cheerful greens and yellows.

"It's fine," he replied, digging in his pockets for a handkerchief and wiping the stickiness from his hand, "I feel much better now." Because of her. _As long as I'm with you, I'll be fine…_ he added silently.

And, he realized at that moment, he was no longer worried about the future. No matter what fate dealt him, he was sure he would make it with Cagalli by his side. He wondered if she felt the same way as she watched him with radiant eyes. Could it be that she could sense his emotions so strongly? He decided to test it, just out of curiosity. _I love you…_ he thought at her.

And she blushed!

"My, oh, my," Lacus chirped at his shoulder, her lake blue eyes twinkling mysteriously, "do I hear wedding bells?"

"W-Wedding bells!?" Athrun yelped before he could stop himself.

Lacus could read his thoughts even better than Cagalli could? That was preposterous! He had not even been thinking about— A deep scarlet hue settled into his cheeks as his ears picked up the sound of church bells ringing in the distance, bellowing out above the general noise of the city. Athrun thought he would die of embarrassment.

"Why, Miss Cagalli, you're blushing!" Lacus twittered excitedly.

It was true. Cagalli's blush was even deeper than his own, her expression stuck somewhere between astonishment and heated mortification. He smiled in spite of himself. The two of them definitely had a connection.

"Hey, Athrun, look!" Kira exclaimed suddenly, thankfully rescuing Athrun from the awkward situation. He was pointing eagerly at a large poster. "It's Battloid Raiders!"

It took Athrun a while to recognize the logo of a video game he and Kira knew from their childhood days on the moon. They used to spend hours playing it. Those days seemed to belong to a different era, the memories of another person. It was funny how the key combo's still leaped to mind when he thought about it a little.

"Number four…" he gasped as he noticed how many sequels they had missed. It had not been that long ago that the two boys had dreamed about whether there would ever be a sequel released. Had it? Kira's eyes held the same sense of loss and longing Athrun felt in his heart.

"Kira?" Lacus cheeped, cocking her head in concern.

"Leave it to you two idiots to get all choked up over a video game!" Cagalli groaned.

Athrun opened his mouth to protest that it really had been a great game when he realized how dumb that would sound. Instantly, he found the whole situation so incredibly funny that he burst out laughing instead. Kira's eyebrows shot up in surprise, but it felt so good, Athrun could not stop himself. He could not remember the last time he had been able to laugh like this. Cagalli stood aghast, her mouth hanging open. The comical expression on her face made Athrun laugh even harder, until even Kira was clutching his sides with glee. Lacus stared at both Kira and Athrun in wonder, and Cagalli pouted fiercely all the while. Maybe she thought he was laughing at her.

"I wonder if they still have the original in store," Kira piped up when their laughter had settled down. He had Athrun by the wrist and was all but dragging him towards the shop.

"It's a video game store, Kira, not an antique shop!" Athrun quipped.

"But it's a classic!" Kira argued. "They have to have it!"

"It was a classic back when _we_ played it. Now it's an antique."

"You sound like an old man, Athrun!"

"H-Hey, just what do you mean by that!?"

"Wait a minute…" Lacus said suddenly. Her face was a shade paler than usual and her crystal eyes held a touch of worry. Seeing worry on Lacus's face was indeed cause for concern. Athrun discarded all thoughts of the ancient video game, and Kira rushed to the pink-haired beauty's side instantly.

"Lacus, what's wrong?" Kira's voice was tender as he put his hands on her shoulders as gently as if handling a glass doll. "What is it?"

Though Athrun had always had a rather clumsy mental image of Kira Yamato, his crybaby childhood friend had changed into a grown man ever since being involved with Lacus Clyne. The transformation was stunning, like a caterpillar evolving into a butterfly. Of course, the same way a butterfly never loses some of its caterpillar traits, Kira still had a very child-like manner about him, but the new Kira's differences were almost tangible.

"Has anyone seen where Pink-chan went?" she asked. "It was right beside me a moment ago…"

Athrun found it hard not to look disappointed. A missing Hallo was hardly something worth getting upset over. Unless, of course, you were a pink-headed songstress by the name of Lacus.

"Hey, you're right," Cagalli remarked quite seriously as she scanned the pavement for signs of the stray micro unit. "I thought it was kinda quiet before…"

"Maybe it's playing a trick on us," Athrun suggested wearily. Though he had not programmed them that way, Hallo's always seemed to aquire strange, yet distinctly unique personalites after coming in contact with Lacus. The pink one had developed a disturbing knack for mischief. That line of thought made Athrun frown. It was bizarre to think of machines that way. It was not like they were really alive.

"Perhaps," Lacus conceded softly. "Pink-chan likes to go for walks."

"We'll search the area!" Kira proposed gravely.

"Right!" Cagalli agreed.

The more Athrun thought about it, he realized, the more it bothered him. The pink one had been the first of many Hallo's he had given Lacus during their engagement. The thought of machines upholding things like loyalty was as outrageous as buildings coming to life and turning into hostile GUNDAMs – a stupid nightmare that frequented his dreams lately – but Pink-chan seemed to have that quality branded into its circuits. It was never far from its pink proprietor. No matter how fervently Athrun hoped that the thing had merely run out of battery power somewhere along the way, a nagging fear remained at the back of his mind. And it told him that something was wrong here.

---

Lacus was distraught over her missing Hallo. After all, they had retraced their steps again and again – with no luck – before finally deciding to return to the orphanage. Kira understood her feelings completely, he thought as he as he tapped his finger absently on the smooth little head of the mechanical bird perched on his shoulder. If Torii were to just disappear like that, he would have been inconsolable.

"What's taking so long?" Cagalli asked for the third time since Athrun had shooed them from the room he was staying in at the orphanage. Her fingers were drumming rapidly on any surface they could find, and any moment now she would start messing with her hair.

She clearly did not understand it, but Kira had known from the moment those tools had come out of the hidden compartment in Athrun's room that they would be seeing very little of his childhood friend that evening. Athrun Zala would need some genius-alone-time tonight – that determined look on his face had said it all. Lacus let out a lonely sigh that had nothing to do with the absense of her precious, pink toy. Kira had had to ask Lacus to send the children to bed early so Athrun could concentrate. Not that Athrun had complained. But Kira knew that it was difficult enough to build stuff in absolute silence. He did not want to know what it would be like with the constant buzz of children in the background. As a result, the girls were bored beyond belief. Kira had never pictured his sister to be a motherly figure like Lacus, and she was not, but his twin did seem to enjoy entertaining the kids with her antics.

"Milk and cookies, everyone!" the cheerful voice of Kira's mom sang out from the doorway that led out of the kitchen. "Who'd like some?"

Cagalli perked up a bit at that, but Lacus only nodded slightly, nothing more than a polite bending of her neck. Kira felt his stomach rumble and suddenly remembered that he had had only half an ice cream for lunch before the pink Hallo's disappearance.

"Thanks, Mom!" Kira enthused, but found it hard to take his eyes off Lacus's sad face.

"Still no luck finding the little critter, hmm?" Kira's mom asked as she set the tray down on the coffee table occupying the centre of the living room. The sweet smell of daintily flavoured lavender cookies drifted from beneath the lace cloth covering the platter.

"None yet, Mrs Yamato," Lacus replied dejectedly. She murmured her thanks at accepting a tall glass of milk, but did not raise it to her lips.

Cagalli gulped down hers along with two cookies before Lacus had even leaned forward to reach for one. Kira stole another glance at his twin. It was obvious which one was the lady between Cagalli and Lacus. Athrun often commented that Kira and Cagalli's table manners were evidence enough of their relation if nothing else was. Sometimes that Athrun said the most infuriating things, Kira thought indignantly. He did not gobble stuff up like that… did he? He shrugged the thought aside and reached for another cookie.

"Maybe I should go call Athrun too," his mom was saying with a thoughtful expression on her face. "He's been in there for quite some time, hasn't he?"

"I don't think he wants to be disturbed," Kira interjected quickly. He knew his friend well enough to predict that the snack would only sit forgotten on the table until the work was finished. Athrun was the kind of guy who always finished whatever he started as far ahead of schedule as possible. And with Lacus's happiness hanging in the balance, Kira doubted that Athrun would stop to consider his own needs. "No, he definitely wouldn't want to be disturbed right now."

"Oh, but he's been at it for hours…!"

"Your concern is only natural, Mrs Yamato," Lacus stepped in smoothly. "But it is necessary for Athrun's state of heart at the moment. He feels that he needs to be of help at a time like this."

Kira's mom just blinked at the pink-haired girl's cryptic words, but thankfully resettled herself onto the couch instead of questioning. Lacus just had that kind of effect on people that made you want to sit down and listen to every word that came from her angel lips. Even if you only understood half of them.

"That boy is always working so hard…" Caridad Yamato observed finally, a worried frown beginning to crease her forehead.

Since their early childhood days, Kira had noticed that his mother enjoyed fussing over his best friend. And Athrun always seemed to thrive on the attention. Kira supposed he understood it now, but at the time he merely found it all a bit embarrassing.

Just then, that forbidden door down the hall burst open. Kira was on his feet before he even realized what he was doing, and the girls were right behind him. They all gasped as a very pale Athrun emerged from the darkened room. For a moment, Kira regretted not saving a cookie for his best friend. He was white as a sheet, and – Kira's guilty conscience added – had not even had half an ice cream for lunch since his had melted.

"Athrun!" Cagalli cried, extending her arms to give the dark-haired boy a vigorous shake. "What the—!?"

At least, Kira's selfishness only bothered him until his twin sister went into a wild coughing fit. As she shook Athrun firmly by his shoulders, a cloud of dust rose up out of his clothing. Only then did it become apparent that his face was ashen with dust, not weakness. Now that Kira was over the initial shock of seeing his best friend in what they had all thought was a state of deprivation, he noticed that Athrun was covered from head to toe in greyish dirt. He looked like he had just crawled out of a sandstorm!

"Oh my…" Lacus remarked with a delicate cough.

"What the hell happened to you!?" Cagalli choked out between ragged breaths.

"I…" Spots of colour lit up Athrun's cheeks. He turned to Kira's mom, who had also joined the crowd in the doorway, and hung his head in shame. "I had to take apart the vacuum cleaner… I'm really sorry, Mrs Yamato!"

"The Hallo got stuck in the hoover!?" Cagalli squawked in disbelief. Kira's mom just shook her head in disbelief.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple…" Athrun replied mysteriously. A small smile was playing on his lips. Kira could see the suspence fuelling a frown of frustration on Cagalli's face. The entire evening of waiting had chafed her patience to a very thin thread. Just as his hot-tempered sister opened her mouth, though, Lacus let out a startling squeal of delight.

"Oh, Athrun, what is this!?" she cried as she dashed past him to cuddle something sitting on the workbench beside Athrun's bed. Something that bore an incredibly suspicious resemblence to a vacuum cleaner.

"Uh… um, it's a…" Athrun stammered, completely caught off guard by Lacus's emotional interruption. He quickly recovered his cool, though. "It's a Hallo Detector. Here, I'll show you how it works."

He ushered everyone into his room like he was inviting them to a formal dinner party. Pride shone vibrantly in his emerald eyes, excitement making his vivid pupils seem larger and rounder than usual. As Kira stepped into the room, the invention – illuminated dramatically by the single light bulb that was fastened to the bedside desk – immediately took his breath away. Sure, it had the shell of a vacuum cleaner, but that was where the similarities ended. How his childhood friend had managed to put together a technologically advanced gadget like this out of regular household stuff was beyond Kira.

An enthusiastic Athrun flipped the power switch on the predictably pink robotic creature's head and its flashlight eyes came to life. He picked up a remote with a palm-sized screen attached to it. Kira had to stand on tiptoe to see over Athrun's shoulder as he demonstrated the remote's features to the enchanted Lacus. He felt a momentary stab of jealousy at the adoring look Athrun was receiving from those blue gemstone eyes. Kira gave himself a mental kick for having thought such a thing. Athrun and Lacus shared an undeniable friendship. Something special that was not the same as anything Kira felt towards the pink-haired girl, but neither was it like the young love that was budding between Athrun and Cagalli. It was a precious relationship Kira was not about to intrude on.

At a surprised gasp from Athrun, Kira noticed that the indicators on the tiny screen were going ballistic. The Hallo Detector sprouted boosters and propelled itself across the room.

"Wow…" a starry-eyed Lacus crooned.

"Wait, no, this isn't supposed to happen!" Athrun panicked, pressing buttons all over the cramped little control in his hand. Nothing he did seemed to be having any effect, though. "We have to stop it! Quick, the off switch…!"

"Can't you just shut it down from the remote!?" Kira suggested, ducking just before the Hallo Detector could ram straight into his nose. The range of peculiar expressions warring on Athrun's face made it clear that he could not.

"I didn't think of that…" he admitted slowly, his expression finally settling on something Kira could only describe as distressed frustration.

"You mean you even painted it pink but you forgot to put an off switch on the remote!?" Cagalli exclaimed incredulously, grunting as the out-of-control Hallo Detector narrowly missed her head.

"It's not as obvious as it sounds…" Athrun defended bitterly. His confidence was melting away faster than that mint ice cream of his had. Immediately, Kira felt sorry for his best friend.

"Come here, come to me," Lacus clucked invitingly, even spreading her arms out towards the buzzing contraption. "My – Name – Is – Lacus: L – a – c – u – s… Come to Lacus, dear!"

"I don't think that will work…" Athrun moaned, burying his face in his hands. "The reason it's out of control is because it's trying to locate all of your Hallo's at once…" He looked thoroughly ashamed as he added: "I forgot about that as well…"

Strangely, though, the hovering menace seemed to be fascinated by Lacus's performance. Kira felt the urge to lunge between Lacus and the unpredictable robotic bug. He did not think she would be able to get out of the way fast enough, should the thing suddenly change its mind. Athrun's eyes were getting rounder and rounder with pure disbelief as the Hallo Detector drifted into Lacus's hands like a tame, pink puppy. With speedy reflexes like that of a swooping bird, Lacus quickly tapped the off switch with a dainty finger. Her calm and controlled image drooped only a little bit as she let out a short sigh of relief.

"Aaargh, I just don't understand it!" Athrun groaned miserably from behind his hands.

Kira had to agree, Lacus had a bizarre influence on machines. To Kira, it was just another one of life's great mysteries that would never be understood. But it was shattering every explanation Athrun's logical mind could come up with right now. That much was clear from the lost look in his friend's eyes. At times like these, trying to work things out with logic just did not help. So Kira put his hand on his friend's shoulder and sent him an encouraging smile. There was_one_ mystery they _could_ solve now – Pink-chan's disappearance.

---

Cagalli was seriously peeved at Athrun. She purposefully avoided looking at him as they drove through the darkening city streets. All of his attention seemed to be focused on following the Hallo Detector's signal anyway, so frowning at him would have been a waste of energy. And looking at his handsome face for too long would soften the edges of her prickly mood too soon. Not that she _wanted_ to stay mad at him, exactly. She just wanted him to know how she felt before she didn't feel that way anymore. A nagging voice in her head told her that it was the same thing, but she violently shoved her conscience aside for now. Athrun had to suffer at least a little of her wrath, or he would never learn.

The only sound in the car aside from the purring engine was the occasional bleep from the Hallo Detector's revised remote control – it now had an off switch. Normally, Cagalli would have felt compelled to switch on the radio, but she did not feel like letting the outside world into their personal little bubble just yet. News and politics were the last things she wanted to think about right now. She risked a glance at the Coordinator boy behind the steering wheel. His midnight blue hair framed his face just so, creating a deliciously deep contrast with his moonlight pale skin. His strong eyebrows were bent into a frown of determination and his spring green eyes never left the road. No, for the moment, this reality was the best one for her. After her inauguration into Orb's government she could worry about important stuff like politics.

With a jab of irritation, she realized that she was not only ogling Athrun's incredibly attractive features, but, to her great frustration, her lips were slowly spreading into a lovestruck smile. Quickly, she tore her eyes away from him.

"Are you still mad at me?" his sweet honey-voice broke the silence between them.

"Of course I am!" she grunted curtly.

She should have exploded right then. She should have told him exactly what she had been thinking all the time she had been silent. When she had offered her help in the search for Lacus's missing Hallo, he forbade her to come along and announced that he would go on his own. The infuriating idiot! Bossing her around like he was her personal bodyguard or something! Thinking about things in hindsight, she knew that all he really wanted to do was protect her. And no matter how badly she wanted to yell at him and make him understand that she was not about to sit around like rare jewellery in a showcase while he did all the work, she could not. He had given her frustration enough time to seep away. And, after making her promise to do exactly as he said, he _had_ given her her way in the end. He should be the angry one, really. Yet he was not even a little upset. Just… quiet.

Guiltily, she wondered if she had hurt his feelings. She could not remember everything she had said to him during the argument. The fury that had been pumping in her veins at the time had left a rather obscure memory of the conversation. She knew she had a tendency to say things without thinking them through properly. Lowering her eyes, she clasped her hands in her lap.

"You're going to be the death of me, you know that?" Athrun chuckled softly. Cagalli turned to stare at him. A gentle smile graced his tender lips, but his eyes were still fixed firmly on the road ahead.

"No way!" she declared, crossing her arms over her chest firmly. "_You're_ the one who's gonna make _me_ die of worry first!" She thrust an accusing index finger at him for emphasis. "If I don't stick near you to look after you, who will?_You_ sure won't!"

"I can take care of myself just fine…" he mumbled. He had the nerve to look undignified, but the smile did not leave his eyes.

"While I'm sitting at home worrying my butt off over you?" she retorted fiercely. "That'll be the day!"

Athrun could say whatever he wanted, there was no way he would convince her that he had even half as much to worry about as she did. Sure, she got herself into a pickle every once in a while, but at least she was careful about it! Athrun attracted danger the way Lacus's garden attracted birds and butterflies. And he _always_ managed to get himself hurt! Sometimes Cagalli thought that Athrun was too brave for his own good. She wished he would not be so hard on himself all the time. That was why she had to be by his side – to make sure he did not do brainless things like self-destructing mobile suits without coming up with an escape plan first!

"It stopped," he said suddenly.

It took Cagalli a moment to realize that he had dropped the subject and was referring to the Hallo Detector. She was almost disappointed. She would have liked to hear what he would have said to try and prove that she was the one who caused the most worry.

Her thoughts turned to the issue at hand. It was odd, almost impossible, that the pink Hallo could be so far from where they had lost it that afternoon. She wondered if Athrun's latest contraption was not malfunctioning again. She did not have the heart to voice her doubts, though. A sceptical remark about his invention certainly would hurt his feelings, especially since his earlier mistakes were still fresh wounds to his pride.

Athrun steered the vehicle down a sidestreet and parked it in the shadows. He took the remote in one hand and his handgun in the other before getting out of the car. Cagalli felt her muscles tense at the sight of the weapon. An icy chill creeped up her spine, and she caught herself wishing that she had remembered to put on a sweater or something before stubbornly locking herself in the car earlier.

"Do you… really think you're gonna need that?" she asked nervously.

"You can never be too careful," came his simple reply as he placed the gun in its holster hidden underneath his jacket.

Her image of finding the lost Hallo somewhere in an abandoned gutter dramatically transformed into a fire fight between Athrun and a band of thugs who wanted to sell the little pink toy on the black market. Pretty soon it was quite a bleak picture her wild imagination was painting. Abruptly she found his hand on her shoulder, his fingers warm and gentle on the bare skin where her sleeveless blouse failed to cover it. He must have noticed her distress, for his eyes were eternally comforting as he leaned back into the car to reach her. Cagalli felt her whole body relax at his touch. He did not seem aware of it – had he been, he would have been blushing, she knew – but to her this was one of the most romantic moments of her life.

"It's all right, Cagalli," he coaxed, "I'll protect you."

It was a shame that the moment had to end as abruptly as it had begun. Reluctantly, Cagalli unfastened her seatbelt and got out on the passenger side of the vehicle. When she reached his side, she noticed that he was eyeing her with concern.

"Something wrong?" she frowned the question at him. At this, he regained his playful smile.

"I don't know, not really," he replied, and looked like he would have scratched his head, had his dignity allowed such a gesture. "Just that… that's where you're supposed to say—"

"I can take care of myself, you just watch your own butt?" she filled in smoothly. "I thought you hate it when I say that."

"I do— I mean, um…" Athrun stammered. "Ah, well, I… guess I sort of got used to hearing it… and when you didn't say anything I thought you might still be… um… mad at me…"

"You idiot," Cagalli replied affectionately, pushing a lock of midnight hair away from his face. She smiled as she noted a faint blush starting to colour his cheeks. She pulled away just before her own blush could get started. "Let's get moving."

"Er… Yeah…"

The night air was cool, even in the absence of that afternoon's breeze. She tried to stay as close to Athrun as she could without being too obvious about it. The deep shadows from the surrounding buildings suddenly seemed like tunnels from the underworld, where any kind of thing could leap out at you. Realizing that she was only scaring herself by studying their surroundings, she decided to focus her senses on Athrun, who was leading the way. His confidence was like a beacon of light in the darkness.

---

Athrun wished that he could have had eyes in more places as he found his way in the dim light of the moon. With Cagalli tagging along, he felt a constant niggling of fear that something might happen to her. But there had been no convincing her to stay behind. She irrationally insisted that he would be putting himself in unnecessary danger if she was not around to save him. But here she was, risking her own safety and doing exactly what she did not want him doing! It was at times like these that he almost wished girls were more like GUNDAMs. At least those came out with a manual…

He shrugged the ridiculous thought aside and concentrated on the smooth remote lying flat in his palm. The signal from the Hallo Detector was blinking frantically, which meant that it was no longer moving. So it had either located the missing Hallo, or had come across an obstacle, like a wall or building. The Detector had a map of the city stored in its databanks to make it easier for them to follow its path by car, and while it would not have been impossible for Athrun to enable it to calculate the shortest path to the Hallo, he did not want the thing barging through doors or windows. That would have been breaking-and-entering, he thought judiciously.

Finally, the pink shell of the Hallo Detector became visible in the vast shadows ahead. It was hovering lazily in front of an abandoned house, the windows of which had been nailed shut with haphazardly arranged planks. The roof was in poor condition and weeds ran rampant throughout the small garden that once served to beautify the face of the building. The door seemed sturdy enough, though, and was locked, besides. He took a few steps back, and Cagalli gasped as he relentlessly kicked the door down. When he sent her a questioning look, she merely shrugged. He activated the flashlight installed on the Detector's remote and stepped inside carefully. Reaching for the pistol hidden inside his jacket, Athrun felt his heartbeat slow as his military training took over – a honed exercise that sharpened his senses. He could hear Cagalli's every movement as she followed him closely, and the darkness seemed to give way to his vision.

They creeped their way through the dirt-encrusted interior of the old house until a hunch led Athrun down a squeaky set of stairs. The old basement consisted of a long passage ending in a gloom-shrouded doorway. His skin tingled as he inched towards the gaping door ahead. As he stepped into the dark room, his hand instinctively felt for a light switch. He was surprised to find one just beside the door, and even more surprised that it was operational. But as light flooded the room, bathing its interior in an eerie ultraviolet, the oddity of working lights in an abandoned building was the last thing on Athrun's mind. As his eyes took in the expansive underground chamber, he felt sick to his stomach. He could feel the colour draining from his face.

"Wh-What is this place…!?" he breathed.

Along the wall opposite the doorway was a collage of all the newspaper clippings and magazine articles ever printed about the pink-haired idol, Lacus Clyne. Another wall boasted an extensive collection of posters, quite possibly every available poster of Lacus in the world. But worst of all were the photographs… Plastered all over the remaining walls were photographs of Lacus, taken from obscure angles, some enlarged to the point of pixilation – Lacus walking in city streets, Lacus doing her shopping, Lacus having a picnic with Kira, Cagalli and himself, Lacus on PLANT, Lacus in Orb, Lacus in the privacy of the Clyne Mansion. Athrun felt an involuntary shiver wrack his body.

"Who would do something like this…?" was all the stunned Cagalli could utter from behind.

"Someone with an obsession…" he replied gravely, once he had full control of his emotions again. He could not keep his insides from tying itself in knots, however.

"And… some sicko took all these pictures… without us knowing it…?" Cagalli's voice quavered. Athrun nodded in reply, unable to keep the disgust from showing on his face.

Stepping deeper into the chamber, Athrun forced himself to make an inclusive analysis of the situation. Alarming splotches of dark red stained one corner of the room where broken glass littered the floor. He tried not to think too hard about what might have caused the stains, so he focused on the rest of the room. It was furnished with a table that was littered with papers, a desk with a computer and printer, and a worktable with mechanical parts, a handful of tiny screws, a memory chip… He frowned. Why did these objects all look so familiar? When he crossed the room to study the items on the worksurface closely, it suddenly hit him like a blow to the stomach. Athrun felt like he was trying to swallow a brick as his wide eyes recognised the pieces of a brutally mutilated Hallo. The tiny, pink toy looked like it had not even been switched off properly before it was taken apart… He thought of how many hours he had spent putting the critter together with the greatest care. That someone could just smash all that effort apart without feeling a thing was inhuman… Suddenly, he realized that his eyes had begun to sting. He blinked forcefully to clear his vision, checked to make sure Cagalli was not looking at him and quickly scrubbed a hand across his eyes.

"Why would anyone do such a thing?" asked Cagalli. He was glad for her comforting hand on his shoulder. "And… why take the Hallo at all?"

"He probably wanted to see how close he could get to her without being noticed…" Athrun explained grimly. His hands curled themselves into fists. "He's gaining confidence. It's a sign that he'll be making a move soon."

"Then… Lacus is in danger!" Cagalli cried hoarsely. "We have to warn Kira!"

"Found my hidey-hole, I see," a male voice snapped Athrun back into alertness. He spun around and aimed his gun at the dark figure standing just outside the doorway. His features were masked by the gloom.

"Don't move!" Athrun commanded, but was cut off by a sinister chuckle rising from the shape in the shadows. He sensed Cagalli retreating a few steps. Athrun guessed that she was frightened. She did not like openly showing her fear.

"You're in no position to be giving orders," the voice laughed and the figure raised its one hand. Something was off here. He was not holding a weapon that Athrun could see, but he was too confident. Shifting his feet nervously, Athrun found his mind working in overdrive. What did this guy know that he was unaware of? "Sadly, I don't have time to entertain you right now."

Warning signals went off in Athrun's head as the man continued to move his raised hand. Anticipating what would happen next, he lunged forward at the same moment the figure in the doorway flipped a switch. But he was too late. An armour-plated door slid between Athrun and the stalker.

"No!" he cried, slamming a fist against the thick, steel door.

They were locked in.

"I'll deal with you little snoops later," the man's voice crackled through a speaker in the door. "For now, I have better things to do!"

Athrun could feel himself breaking into a cold sweat at the thought of Lacus at the mercy of some obsessed madman. He could not bear the thought of her being hurt. He was willing to die ten times over if that would keep her safe.

"Get back here, you coward!" Cagalli roared, apparently having trouble deciding whether she was scared or furious. The situation was too serious to be amused with her, but she seemed to think that he was, for she turned her scowl on Athrun. "How the hell are we gonna get out of here!?"

"I don't know," he replied as he frantically searched his pockets for anything that might be useful. A small smile of triumph played on his lips as his fingers closed around his cellphone. "But at least we can try to warn them!" He pulled out the sleek, silver phone and held it in front of her nose.

"Yes! Way to go, Athrun!" Cagalli cheered, already starting up a little victory jig.

"Uh oh, wait a minute…" Athrun groaned as the knot in his stomach drew itself tighter.

"Huh?" she grunted, pausing in mid-caper.

"There's no reception in here… The phone's dead."

"Oh, man, _now_ what!?"

Athrun squeezed his eyes shut. Lacus was in very real danger, and there was nothing he could do to warn her. But he had to get to her, somehow. Upon opening his eyes, they fell on the broken Hallo on the workbench. Brimming with determination, Athrun nodded to himself.

**To be continued...**


	2. Chapter 2: The Missing Songstress

**Author's Note:** Thank you so much, everyone who read the first chapter of my story, and thank you for the positive reviews! Thanks to your input, I was inspired to finish the story way ahead of schedule! I hope everyone enjoys the second chapter even more than the first one!

**Disclaimer: Gundam Seed and all its characters belong to their respective owners.**

**Berry Blush Shampoo (Part 2)**

Kira patrolled the length of hall in front of Lacus's bedroom door endlessly, with Torii perched faithfully on his shoulder. It was getting late, and Athrun and Cagalli had not so much as called to let him know what they were doing. Athrun was a responsible person – he did not doubt that his childhood friend would take care of Cagalli. On the contrary, it was that reckless twin of his that had Kira sweating. What if she rushed both herself _and_ Athrun headfirst into something dangerous?

No, he was sure it was just the Hallo Detector acting up again. Or maybe they were a little lost – the city streets were like a maze in the dark. After all, he thought as he shook himself firmly, Athrun was supposed to be the group's worry-wart, not Kira! The doorbell would ring at any moment, the two of them would stride in through the front door, arguing heatedly over who had been protecting who, and Pink-chan would be bouncing along behind them energetically. It would take a wholehearted leap into Lacus's hands and she would beam brightly at having her Hallo back. Kira nodded to himself. The thought of Lacus having her usual radiant smile back definitely made him feel better.

His thoughts returned to the present at hearing a muted argument coming from inside Lacus's room. _Weird…_ he thought._There's nobody in there except Lacus._

Panic struck him from all sides as he edged closer to the door, trying to make out who she was talking to. At the back of his mind, a little voice remarked that he was starting to act just like Athrun, stressing over every little thing. He trampled the thought as quickly as it had surfaced and rushed into Lacus's room. Normally, he would have knocked first, but these were exceptional circumstances.

Inside, Kira found Lacus standing alone in the middle of the room, gesturing heatedly with her one hand while pressing a golden earpiece to her cheek with the other. Her back was turned and she did not notice him immediately. While she did not sound upset, she was certainly urgent about the matter she was discussing. Kira's eyebrows shot up as he realized that the cell phone Lacus was talking into was that moon-shaped hairclip she always wore.

"It was a cell phone…?" he wondered out loud before he could stop himself.

"Kira!" Lacus squeaked and spun around, snapping the phone shut with a brisk motion. The shocked expression on her face was soon smoothed into a placating smile. "You startled me…"

"I'm sorry," Kira apologized sincerely. If he had known she had a phone with her, he probably would not have barged in like he had. _Which reminds me…_ "Who were you talking to? It sounded serious…"

"An old acquaintance," she replied feebly. She lowered her eyes and reluctantly added, "not exactly a friend, I'm afraid…"

Concern for the frail, blue-eyed girl welled up inside of Kira until he thought he would burst. He hoped that this mysterious phone call did not have anything to do with Pink-chan's disappearance, yet somehow he knew it did. Silently, he drew her into his arms and brushed her lush, pink hair with his fingertips. They remained that way for a while, enjoying one another's warmth as he kept his arms around her. He realized anew that he would do anything for this girl, anything to protect her.

"Not a friend, you say?" he coaxed.

"Kira, we have to go look for them…"

"You think Athrun and Cagalli are in trouble?" he asked urgently, pulling away a bit to search her large, crystal eyes. "Lacus, you have to tell me what's going on…!"

"Kira, I—"

At that moment, the doorbell rang. A great sense of relief washed over Kira. He gave Lacus a reassuring smile as he pulled out of their hug and started for the front door.

"That's them," he said over his shoulder as he jogged down the hall. "I'll be right back!" He opened the door, but instead of seeing Athrun and Cagalli as he had expected, there was a dark, intimidating character filling the doorway. "Who…?"

Just then, he heard a cry from inside the house.

"Lacus!" he yelled, instinctively whirling in the direction of the sound. He realized his mistake too late as something solid was smashed into his head from behind. Through the skull-splitting pain, Kira could hear another scream as he dropped to the ground. He could faintly recognize it as his mother's voice, before losing consciousness completely.

---

One more time, Cagalli cast her eyes over the jumbled heaps of papers strewn all over the table in the madman's lair. The guy's other hobby seemed to be collecting bills, she thought wryly. And all of these together added up to quite a sum. It seemed the stalker was in financial trouble, and quite upset about it by the looks of the crumpled condition of the pages that boasted "FINAL NOTICE" in red letters.

"This guy owes a lot of money…" she commented in Athrun's direction.

"Mm…" he murmured, not even looking up from where he was hunched over the broken Hallo on the worktable.

Cagalli felt her temper flare up again. Here they were, trapped in an obsessed stalker's lair with no time to waste. She would have thought he could use his talent for mechanical things to try and open the door somehow. But Athrun was tinkering away at fixing an annoying little mechanic ball! He had not even so much as looked at the sealed door barring their way to freedom.

She concentrated on balling her hands into fists until she could feel her temper simmer back down to a slow boil instead of the open flame that had been threatening to make her lash out at him. Yelling at Athrun would not help the situation any. Still, it frustrated her when he pulled in on himself and got all quiet like this. It just was not healthy, after all.

Instead of fussing over Athrun's mood, she busied herself with studying the room once more. The corner where the shattered glass was strewn all over the floor – upon closer inspection it turned out to have been test tubes of some sort – and red splotches smeared the wall, Cagalli had found a scrap of stained paper. It must have been a label from one of the tubes. The slightly smudged letters read "Rusty Rose". On the counter, further digging turned up similar labels bearing names like _Petunia Pink_, _Dusky Dapple_ and _Berry Blush_. Had it not been for the lame alliterations, Cagalli would have thought they were names for those expensive perfumes some girls liked to wear. Just what was the crazy crook cooking up in this creepy coop of his? _Great, I'm even starting to think in alliterations!_ she thought irritably. She shook her head to clear it and continued her search, though she was pretty sure that she had gone through everything thoroughly by now.

"I'm back!" a shrill voice from behind made Cagalli jump.

She spun around, ready to fling a punch at whoever was sneaking up on her, when a pink blur sped into her chest.

"Hallo!?" she gasped, staring at the bright pink critter pressing its round, metallic body against her affectionately. She looked up to see Athrun grinning smugly. One of these days she was going to make him regret laughing at her whenever she ended up in embarrassing situations. _But not just now_, she decided as she noticed how that smile lit up his solemn green eyes with the glow of warmth.

"Hallo! I'm fine!" the Hallo bleeped lovingly. Sometimes she thought Athrun had programmed the thing a bit too well.

"Yeah, that's great," Cagalli muttered, forcing the pushy critter to give her some breathing space. "But that still doesn't help us get out of here," she added with a meaningful frown at Athrun.

"Don't be too sure," Athrun replied mysteriously. "Let's go for a walk, Hallo!"

Suddenly, the Hallo's eyes flickered erratically. It bounced its way to the locked door and stared at it with all its might. Cagalli felt a little silly holding her breath. As she expected, nothing happened. After four whole seconds, she opened her mouth to say something she would surely have regretted later. That was when the door slid open of its own accord.

"Wha— I mean— Huh— B-But— Athrun, how the heck did you do that!?" she stammered.

"I haven't been able to figure it out yet," he admitted, studying his feet, "but you should ask Lacus when we get back."

Yep, he had definitely programmed the thing too well. He did not even understand his own creations! It was her turn to smirk at him.

"Does this mean Lacus is better at programming micro units than you are?" she teased. He looked up, opened his mouth as if to retaliate, then closed it again and started to blush. And that was just the cutest sight in the world.

"Anyway," he coughed to clear his throat, "we don't have a moment to lose! We have to get to Lacus!"

"Right!" Cagalli agreed. She held on to his hand as the two of them raced down the dark hall and fumbled their way out of the basement, the Hallo bringing up the rear by sheer determination.

---

With a groan, Kira cracked open one eye. Piercing light flooded his vision, prickling awareness. He became uncomfortably aware of a persistent pounding at the back of his head, inviting another low groan from within his throat. A sand yellow blur skittered on the corners of his vision. Two toffee-coloured smudges seemed to fill the rest of his view. For a long moment, he just stared, wondering what he was looking at.

"Kira…! Kira!"

It was a familiar voice calling him. It seemed thin and distant at first, but quickly grew in intensity. He blinked harshly, trying to focus his eyes so that Cagalli would stop yelling in his already ringing ears.

"I'm up… I'm up…" he mumbled. He was far from it, but maybe she would leave him alone if he could make her believe him.

"Thank goodness they didn't knock all your brains out!" she breathed. "What the hell happened here?"

_What happened here…?_ That was a good question. A nagging feeling at the back of his mind told him that he ought to know at least part of the answer. He stared down the hall and remembered a desperate scream. Suddenly memory came flooding back.

"Lacus!" he cried, trying to leap to his feet and nearly blacking out in the process.

"Take it easy, will you!" Cagalli scolded, but the anger in her eyes was not directed at him. She helped him get to his feet, slowly this time, and he took in the scene around him.

Disarrayed furniture littered the room. The place looked as if there had been a struggle while he was unconscious. A sombre Athrun was busy untying Kira's mom where she sat on one of the ladder-backed chairs from the kitchen, her ankles strapped to the legs of the chair with duct tape. Her motherly eyes were filled with tears of relief as they met Kira's.

"I'm sorry, Kira," she whimpered. "I tried to stop them, but they took her…"

There was no need for Kira to ask who they had taken. His heart wrenched at the thought of what might have happened to Lacus. She was so frail and delicate… _If they hurt her, I'll…_

"Mom… I'm glad you're all right…" he murmured, and his mother's eyes echoed the sentiment. Athrun finished with the ties on her ankles and led her to a more comfortable seat on the couch.

That was when Kira's eyes fell on something that made his eyebrows climb almost all the way to his hairline. A man lay curled up on the floor, his arms and legs bound together like those of a pig to the slaughter. His face seemed vaguely familiar, in a dark and intimidating way, but Kira had trouble recognizing him behind a split lip, broken nose and several swollen bruises on his forehead. Besides, tied up like that, he hardly seemed intimidating any longer.

"Was this the dirt bag that hit you?" his twin sister growled, indicating the defenceless villain with a swift kick to the ribs. Her victim doubled up with a grunt.

"Cagalli!" Athrun gasped.

"If he hit my little brother, it's only fair that I abuse him a bit!" Cagalli countered, her arms crossed in front of her and her fiery eyes daring Athrun to challenge her elder sisterly authority. Kira could see Athrun hesitate over his reply. His childhood friend had learned the hard way how violent this princess could get if you stepped on her toes.

"Maybe," Athrun conceded finally, "but beating him up won't help us find Lacus!"

"I know, but—!"

"Athrun's right," Kira put in. His head still throbbed from the blow, but looking at his attacker's ruined face, Kira almost managed to feel sorry for the man. "I mean, look at him. Don't you think that's enough payback for now, Cagalli?"

"That wasn't me," Cagalli huffed disdainfully, turning her back on the battered captive. "I would've done it properly!"

Kira barely held back a grimace.

"She's serious," Athrun testified gravely. "We found him like that. All she did was tie him up…" He shrugged as if he did not understand it either. Kira decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Where is she?" he asked, before Cagalli could change her mind about getting revenge. It would be hard to get answers from a toothless man. The scoundrel barked a ragged laugh. Kira did his best to contain his fears as he held his breath for the man's reply. _If they hurt her…_

"Tell us!" Athrun demanded. Kira could not remember the last time he had heard Athrun sound this fierce. Okay, maybe he could, but there was a different kind of intensity to Athrun's voice. Usually, he did not let on that he was desperate.

"You'll get nothing out of me," the man wheezed. "I don't get paid to spill my guts!"

"Why you!" Cagalli roared as she grabbed the offender by his collar. "I'll show you spilling guts! I'll—!"

"Threaten me all you want," he rasped snidely. "There's nothing you can do that will make me betray my—"

Just then, his eyes bulged in their sockets and he stared as if he was seeing a ghost. His broken face, drained of colour, contorted as he began to stutter unintelligibly. Everyone, even Cagalli, turned to see what had him so spooked. Kira only had a few seconds to gape before a pink blur assaulted the already crippled captive.

"I won't allow it!" a familiar little voice screeched.

"You found the pink Hallo…" Kira said wonderingly.

Athrun was too fascinated with the peculiar standoff between the tied up criminal and the aggravated micro unit to reply. The little pink ball was hovering just above the man's broken nose, peering menacingly at him with its red flashlight eyes. The man inched back as far as his bonds allowed.

"Another one!?" he wailed. "G-Get that thing away from me! I'll tell you anything! I-I-I swear!"

And at that moment, Kira realized who had been bullying the kidnapper while he was unconscious. He shared an incredulous look with Athrun before turning his full attention to the interrogation led by Pink-chan and its multi-coloured regiment of cheering brothers and sisters.

---

Athrun still had a hard time processing the experience. It had been an oddly proud moment for him, seeing the little Hallo's stand together against the much larger kidnapper. On the other hand, he had been a bit horrified that his creations had the potential to be so brutal! They were originally designed to be nothing more than cute, companionable toys to amuse his fiancée, after all. He would really have to go back to his computer sometime and retrace his steps in their programming. He was seriously starting to lose confidence in his skills…

"Athrun?" Kira spoke up suddenly beside him, and he realized that he had been zoning out. "Good thing I'm driving, huh?"

Kira's knowing grin made him frown. How long had he been staring into space? Athrun resolved not to let himself be distracted by thoughts of renegade micro units again, at least not until Lacus was safe.

"I was planning our next move…" he lied.

"Which is?"

"Erm…" Athrun faltered. The question had come too quickly. His mind was a blank. Maybe the worry of the day and the lack of sleep was getting to him. "I… haven't figured that part out yet."

"Well, we better figure something out fast," Kira pointed out, "because we're here."

And indeed they were. The disused hair products factory loomed in front of them like a giant owl in the night, it's hollow eyes glowing only faintly with internal light. According to their captive's frantic directions, this was the place Lacus was being held. Athrun could not stand the thought of her being held captive at all, let alone in such a run down and no doubt dirty place. Kira seemed to have the same thought, for Athrun had to jerk him back by his collar to keep his enraged childhood friend from storming the gates.

"They don't know we're here," Athrun hissed, "but they will if you go knocking on the front door!"

Stealthily, he led Kira around the ghostly building to the back, where a small entrance for deliveries was hidden in the shadows. There was no telling whether the kidnapper had stationed guards there, or anywhere for that matter, but it seemed to be the only way into the factory without ringing the doorbell.

Their stuttering source of information had told them that they were up against a certain Professor Marcus Macefield. Apparently the man had a history of failed projects in the hair care industry, as well as a profound temper problem and a record of experimenting on animals. Macefield's temper problem clarified the matter of those shattered test tubes of dark red formulae Cagalli had found in his hideout. Even without taking the professor's totally tasteless naming convention into consideration, the experiments had undoubtedly been a succession of failures. They also explained that mountain of unpaid bills. But none of it helped them understand what Macefield wanted with Lacus.

The idea that such an unpredictable scientist had his hands on Lacus made Athrun feel queasy. The fact that Kira said she seemed to know him only made the possibilities look more grim.

Putting his fears out of his mind for the time being, Athrun held his gun ready and carefully pushed past the backdoor – closer inspection revealed that it was only held up by one hinge and did not shut properly. Keeping his back against the wall, he darted to check the room for enemies, but was relieved to find it deserted. Kira grunted as he squeezed his way through the obstructed doorway, then suddenly remembered to draw his gun. Athrun just barely stopped himself from making a face.

"Did you remember to take the safety off this time?" he hissed urgently.

Kira's eyes widened.

"Wouldn't it have been easier if we just used the Freedom to bust in here and save Lacus?" he complained as he fumbled with the weapon.

Athrun raised a questioning eyebrow. _Just what does he mean by 'we'?_ he fumed silently. _Don't tell me you want me to back Freedom up with a handgun…_ Kira knew full well that Athrun no longer had a mobile suit to his name. Athrun shook his head. That was not what Kira was thinking. He just wanted to rescue Lacus as quickly and efficiently as possible. Even so, there was a flaw to that strategy.

"And risk him spotting us miles away?" Athrun countered quietly. "We don't want to give him the smallest chance to escape with Lacus, or we may never see her again. And," he added as a measure of reassurance, "Cagalli is working on getting us some backup."

For that, Athrun was indescribably grateful. Naturally, Cagalli wanted to come too, but they had managed to convince her not to. Athrun had a nagging suspicion that if Kira had not stepped in and agreed with him, he and Cagalli would still be arguing. The fiery princess seemed to think she had something to prove to him, though he had not the first clue what that could be. It was strange how she could make so much sense the one moment, and the next seemingly speak an entirely different language altogether.

"I know, I know…" Kira muttered as he finished wrestling with the gun in his hands. "I'm just… I don't want her to get hurt."

Athrun nodded his silent agreement. There was no time to go back on their plan now, anyway. They were here, and they had to save Lacus, no matter the cost. Cautiously, they ventured further into the building. Trying to look everywhere at the same time, Athrun kept tabs on Kira's progress by listening for his footsteps. What bothered Athrun the most as they made their way through the abandoned factory, was the supreme lack of resistance. This was much too easy, which meant that he was missing something. He had not had time to think everything through properly, but he was sure that, after going to such lengths to get his hands on Lacus, this Macefield guy would at least put up a fight.

So he was surprised when he and Kira stepped, blinking, into a brightly lit chamber seemingly at the heart of the factory, and found Lacus standing at the other end of the room, out in the open. She was not restrained in any way that Athrun could see, but she was perfectly still. Squinting, he tried to make out her features against the near-blinding glare of the spotlights hanging overhead.

"Lacus!" Kira cried out, running towards the silent figure on the far end of the room.

"Kira, wait!" Athrun called after him, but Kira ignored him.

Silently cursing his friend's impulsive move, he dashed after him, hoping this was not a trap. He stepped up onto the slightly raised pavilion just a few seconds after Kira did. The moment his feet touched the ground, he knew he had made a mistake. Before them stood not Lacus, but a perfect cardboard replica of her. He had no time to ponder his error, for a blinding flash erupted from somewhere behind the forest of spotlights in front of them. It was like looking right into the blazing midday sun. In vain, Athrun covered his eyes. It was too late. The charge had him blinded. He tried blinking, but everything in front of his eyes remained a stark white haze. Blurry shapes emerged from the edges of his vision, accompanied by the footsteps of several enemies. That was all they could be, Athrun reasoned, as the grey blotches converged on him. He stopped the futile blinking and focused on his hearing instead. He was not sure how many he was up against, but there were quite a few. He did not hear the click of guns. Were they unarmed? They were not trying to be discreet. The shuffling of feet gave away their positions to his fine-tuned hearing. He waited until the last possible moment, then twisted his body to perform a spinning high kick. Behind him, his foot connected with someone's jaw as he spun. This alarmed the other attackers, for their movements became more urgent. Athrun did not give them leeway for assault. He knew they were trying to surround him. As soon as he had both feet on the ground again, he jumped, once again surprising them as he leaped over their heads, using the nape of his front-most enemy's neck as a stepping ladder to propel himself out of the tightening noose.

His vision was gradually recovering, but not fast enough to get him through this fight. If he used his gun, he could end things quickly, but he did not dare. There was no way of telling which of those frantically moving blobs of colour was Kira. It was better to gamble with a broken jaw than a gunshot wound. Not waiting for them to make the first move, Athrun went for the shape closest to him and aimed a blow at where the fellow's throat should be. Next, he jabbed his elbow where he hoped his opponent's stomach was. He heard a grunt as his attack hit home. His victory was short-lived, though, as an unanticipated blow landed roughly against his ribs, knocking the air from his lungs. He fought to stay upright, only to feel the chilling metal of a gun barrel against the side of his head. Kira's gun.

When his eyesight was finally back to normal, his gun was also taken, his hands were tied behind his back and he was seated beside a thoroughly beat up Kira on the floor. He lifted his head, wary of the weapon behind him that was trailing his every movement. His eyes met Kira's. He looked all right, except for a black eye and some scratches. It was not the kind of thing to be concerned about at a time like this, but he caught himself hoping that he did not look worse for wear than Kira did. He refrained from shaking his head – any unexpected moves could mean the end of him.

On the pavilion, he could see Lacus – the real Lacus – frowning reproachfully at her cardboard copy. She was disgusted with her captor's dirty trick. Or maybe she was disappointed in them for falling for it… As if sensing his eyes on her, she looked up and for an instant as their gazes connected, he saw the spark of hope rekindle in her eyes. She turned as a familiar voice spoke up.

"So, Lacus dear," he said. Athrun recognized the voice from the hide-out. It belonged to a tall, if not exactly slender man with a touch of grey in his curly hair. It was Professor Macefield. Athrun would bet his favourite shirt on that. The man was holding a pistol like he meant to use it, and he was alternating between aiming it at Athrun and Kira. "Which one should I get rid of first?"

"If you hurt them, I will refuse to cooperate," Lacus stated formally. If she was distressed, it did not show on her face. Which hopefully meant that she had a plan. Athrun did not find Lacus easy to read. Judging from how close the two of them were, he thought Kira was probably the only one who completely understood Lacus.

"How's that any different from what you've been doing so far? Or all these years, for that matter!" the armed man spat. _All these years?_ Athrun frowned. So Lacus really had a history with Professor Macefield?

"Please allow me to remind you that your previous request was not turned down by my own free will, Marcus, but by decision of my father," Lacus countered smoothly. _She's on a first-name basis with this guy!?_ Was it Athrun's imagination, or had Kira turned a shade paler? Just what did Macefield want from her? _Don't tell me they were in love and had to break up because Lacus and I were about to be engaged!?_ Athrun shooed the scandalous image irritably, but could already feel his cheeks growing hot. This man was old enough to be Lacus's father! _Lacus would never…!_ Despite himself, he darted a look at his best friend's face. Kira's eyes were unreadable and fixed solely on Lacus.

"How about I kill off the blushing kid first?" Macefield said, grimly ignoring Lacus as he trained the gun on Athrun.

"That would be foolish," Lacus replied, her voice as calm as a lake in mid-summer, with not a breeze in sight. "Open your mind, Marcus. Think. Athrun Zala would be just as profitable for you as myself, perhaps even more so."

"P-Profitable!?" Athrun choked out.

"Take a closer look at those perfect, midnight blue strands," Lacus went on, unperturbed. "Its silky appearance is enough to win over any girl's heart. Besides, what goes together better than Lacus Clyne and Athrun Zala? It is a combination romanticized, not only in PLANT, but the world over."

If Athrun's cheeks had burned before, they were ablaze now. How could Lacus say these things? And in front of Kira…! She had never said anything like that about him before, not even during their engagement! He risked a glance in Kira's direction. Kira's purple eyes were glittering, and his face was scrunched up as if he was trying to hide emotions obviously too strong for him to contain. For a moment, he was afraid that his best friend might punch him. Maybe he would not feel like he needed it if he could only stop blushing!

To make things worse, the mad scientist was suddenly scrutinizing Athrun with a wolfish grin. With an oddly high-pitched chuckle, he lowered the gun. His eyes were hidden in his hair as his hungry smile spread wider.

"Lacus, you are profound," he laughed. "All my years of searching for a way to sell my work, all my careful planning and pondering, and you've beaten me to the answer without even thinking about it."

Athrun felt the strong urge to back away as the creepy man approached him, and was pleasantly surprised to find that the guy was undoing his bonds. Athrun kept his face carefully plain. A well-timed kick now could send the freak skidding right across the room.

"Don't try anything," one of the thugs said behind him gruffly, emphatically poking Kira with the barrel of his gun.

Right. Athrun groaned inwardly. He had forgotten about them… There would be no sudden heroic moves, then. He was led to the stage and made to stand next to Lacus. He was surprised to notice a clutter of cameras and other equipment. He found himself staring at the fanciful backdrop behind them, painted in soft shades of pink and decorated with rainbows, bubbles and puffy pastel clouds. Fat, soapy letters spelled the words _Berry Blush Shampoo_ to put a garland of tackiness on the already gaudy scene. The ridiculous thought that all this looked like the setup for a photo shoot popped into his head.

"So you'll cooperate now?" Macefield asked, rubbing his hands together eagerly. "Smile? Pose? Put on those dresses?" This was a photo shoot after all!? "Oh, and Athrun Zala, you had better smile your most dashing smile, or your little buddy gets it!"

Athrun thought he felt his stomach plummet through the floorboards as Macefield raised a camera to his face and the nightmare began…

---

Marcus Macefield was in Hair-product Heaven. Not only did he finally have the chance to photograph Lacus for the Berry Blush hair products range, but he had the perfect couple to sell his product with! This situation could not have turned out better if he had planned it himself! He was already cooking up names for the male version of _Berry Blush_. Maybe a name that alliterated with 'sapphire', or something strong and striking, like _Molten Midnight_. Hmm, that sounded good!

He could not believe that he had never thought of this before. He knew he should have recognized the blue-haired boy's potential instantly, but somehow Marcus had been unable to connect little Athrun, scarcely more than a child and carrying bunches of flowers bigger than himself to the Clyne mansion, to the fierce young warrior who stood beside her now. Besides, the fact that Lacus was paying more attention to the cocoa-haired klutz in the corner than her supposed fiancée was another thing that had thrown him off the trail.

He pushed aside his irritation. After all, soon he would forget that it had not really been his own idea, and he would congratulate himself properly on this stroke of genius. He wondered what that fool, Siegel Clyne, would have thought if he could see this. The man had had the audacity to call the Berry Blush project a "sinking ship"! He had said that he did not want his daughter involved in "sleazy publicity stunts" that could damage her reputation. Well! Here he was, pulling it off, whether Clyne liked it or not!

Holding the camera steady, he studied the shot he was about to make. Athrun looked much too sullen for the picture to be effective, and he posed awkwardly, his back stiff and his eyes on the floor. A threat or two would remedy that.

"I want more feeling in this picture!" he directed. "Look into her eyes and at least _pretend_ you want to kiss her! Heck,_kiss_ her, if you have to!" A strangled squeak came from his hostage, who was watching the photo session from his position on the floor with growing unease. Getting a sinister smile, Marcus stabbed his forefinger in the boy's direction. "Or else I'll shoot him myself!"

Athrun's eyes widened, though it was difficult to tell whether it was at the prospect of his friend getting shot, or at the thought of kissing Lacus. His cheeks were certainly red enough for it to be the latter. Well, Marcus did not really care. He could already imagine rows of bottles containing his recently perfected hair colouring, all bearing a dreamy label with these two lovebirds posing intimately. There would be a poster as well. And profits. Piles and piles of profits!

---

Athrun ground his teeth as he permitted himself one more look in Kira's direction. His best friend seemed to stare right through him, his eyes taking on a look Athrun did not like one bit. Kira was going to kill him. For real, this time.

"It will be all right," Lacus's soft whisper touched his ears like a butterfly's wings brushing against his skin. "Do as he says for now."

With an effort, Athrun forced himself to look into her clear blue eyes. They were pure depths of crystal that seemed to hold all the mysteries of the world. Swallowing uncomfortably, he pulled her delicate frame into his arms. She was as light as a spring blossom on a breeze. He could feel his cheeks grow hotter as she placed her slender wrists behind his neck and tilted her chin up as if waiting for him to place a kiss on her perfect, rosebud lips.

_This is all wrong!_ he thought frantically as memories of a certain blonde princess's mischievous smile shattered the hypnotic spell that had been tangling itself around his mind.

Suddenly, a great crash filled his senses, followed by a bright flash.

"Stop right there!" a bold voice thundered, and Athrun knew he was saved.

The sense of relief washing over him only lasted until he raised his blinking eyes to consider his saviour. Standing almost 18 metres tall, with striking green eyes and candy pink armour, Cagalli's mobile suit was a sight to behold as it came bursting through a part of the ceiling. She had narrowly missed squashing her twin, and Macefield's disorganized henchmen were fleeing in terror. Was Cagalli out of her mind? The situation had been volatile to begin with. Cagalli had just managed to ignite things! _At least this way she can't get hurt…_ he thought wearily.

It took Athrun two seconds to analyze the situation and recover from shock.

Apologetically, he freed himself from Lacus's practically weightless grasp – because he had to move, but mainly because he did not want Cagalli to see him with Lacus in his arms – and, fighting a blush, he turned to face Macefield. The psychotic photographer had his attention focused on the pink giant that was disrupting his dream photo session, but he was fumbling frantically for his gun. Athrun was sure that the man was not planning on firing at Strike Rouge, but at some of the more vulnerable targets in the area, like Kira or Lacus. It was the kind of reasoning that seemed fitting for a madman – if he could not have Lacus, no one would.

His muscles tensed. One false move and everything would be over.

Two strides and a giant leap brought him right next to the surprised Macefield. The man spun, his face twisted in a snarl and his gun raised to fire, but Athrun was already landing a perfect somersault kick. Macefield dropped to his knees. Stubbornly clutching the gun, he tried again to aim it at Athrun chest. Athrun pulled back his fist and poured all his anger and frustration of the day into the single movement of punching the freak's lights out. _Man, that felt good…_ he thought as he nodded to himself.

"Athrun!" Kira cried out.

Athrun only had time to gasp before everything went dark.

---

Just as Athrun finished off the stalking shampoo salesman, the Orb police force streamed into the large chamber, practically filling it. They had all come at Cagalli's command. Kira grinned. She was not even officially the head of Orb yet and already she was bossing everyone around! From the corner of his eye, Kira was aware of the stalker's henchmen being arrested. It served them right for helping to kidnap Lacus.

_Speaking of which…_ he thought, searching the crowd for his pink princess. She stood out like a fresh rose in full bloom. There was a small stab of jealousy in his heart at the image of her in Athrun's arms, looking as if she wanted him to kiss her, but when his eyes found her, though, the pain in his chest immediately dissipated. She was staring straight at him, waiting for him only. He had to push his way though the body of policemen milling about the room, but he did not care. She was waiting for him. That was all that mattered.

Just then, his eyes caught an immense movement from Strike Rouge. What was Cagalli thinking, carelessly moving a mobile suit around in an enclosed space with so many people? It did not take him long to realize her intention. _Oh no, don't tell me…_ His twin's temper had snapped, and now she was acting accordingly.

"Athrun!" he cried out in warning, but his friend looked up too late.

---

The world was swaying. Athrun felt around in the darkness, his fingers finding nothing but a slick, metallic surface. He tried to stand, but his insides protested as his metal prison gave an exceptionally violent lurch. He found a thick extension protruding from one of the walls. He wrapped his arms around it and held on tightly to keep from being tossed about like a rag doll.

---

Kira watched powerlessly as Strike Rouge's mighty hands scooped up his childhood friend as if he were a toy, the immense fingers enclosing him entirely. Before Kira could take another step, Rouge took off with Athrun still in its hands, and disappeared into the night sky. He knew he should never have installed that flight pack…

"Oh my," Lacus chirped beside him, cocking her head and giving him a quizzical look.

"I think she's a little ticked off…" Kira groaned.

---

Cagalli had only one course in mind. She did not even have to think about it, really, for no other place would do. The trees shuddered with the force of Strike Rouge's landing. Disturbed birds flew up out of their branches in search of a safer place to roost. They were on an uninhabited island just outside Orb.

Their island.

Slowly, gently, she lowered Strike Rouge to one knee. Softly, ever so carefully, she set the great mechanical hands down on the ground and allowed the fingers to open up. Her heartstrings gave a small jerk at the sight of a slightly dishevelled Athrun, eyes squeezed shut and clinging helplessly to one of Rouge's thumbs. He opened his eyes one at a time, then craned his neck to see where he was. As if suddenly realizing what it was he was holding on to, he quickly let go of the GUNDAM's finger.

Opening up her cockpit, she came down wordlessly. She had been so worried about him, facing a sick stalker on his own and all. She had had a gut feeling that he was going to get himself hurt again. He always got hurt… The memory of Athrun holding Lacus so tenderly left a foul taste in her mouth. She came all the way to rescue him and he goes around stealing kisses! She should have slapped him then and there, slapped him until he saw stars! But she just could not. A part of her reasoned that there had to be a good, solid explanation behind such a blunt betrayal. Still, she clambered onto Rouge's hand, where Athrun waited for her, and planted her fists in her hips angrily. He had some explaining to do.

---

With an odd mixture of amusement and apprehension, Athrun watched her scramble up the side of the huge robot hand. She was probably going to punch his lights out for almost kissing Lacus, but then, she had a right to. He had failed to prevent the situation from going that far, so he had only himself to blame if she hated him. Suddenly, his heart clenched. The thought of Cagalli hating him was too painful to grasp. _Well, if she does, I deserve it_, he assured himself. It made the idea no less painful.

"Cagalli…" he began. _Please don't hate me…_ he wanted to say, but the words died in his throat as her fiery eyes regarded him with anger. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean… I mean, that guy, he…"

"I'm listening," she said, neither her face nor her voice showing any emotion. It was unsettling to see her this way. Cagalli was an open and honest person who never hid her feelings. So why could he not read her right now?

"He was going to kill Kira," Athrun said finally, studying his feet. "He wanted us to pose together, for his advertisements." He looked up. Still no emotion from Cagalli. Desperately, he added: "I don't love her, Cagalli! Not the way… I love you…" His cursed cheeks coloured immediately.

She jumped at him. This was it, she was going in for the punch now. He tried not to flinch, forcing himself to take as much of the impact as he could. Maybe that would soothe her anger, and make himself feel less guilty. But instead of hitting him, she flung her arms around him.

"You moron!" she laughed. "Why didn't you just _say_ so!?"

"Don't laugh at me," Athrun defended half-heartedly. His treacherous cheeks were still glowing.

That night, they sat on Strike Rouge's hand for the longest time, just staring at the stars and talking about nothing in particular. To Athrun, it was one of the most precious nights of his life, just being able to spend time with her, listen to her voice and not worry about anything. There would be time enough to worry again tomorrow, he reasoned. All he wanted to do was drink in her sunny personality and memorize every detail of her face as the moonlight painted it in mysterious colours.

"What a day, huh?" she said finally, stretching out on her back to get a better view of the stars above.

"Definitely," Athrun replied mischievously. "I mean, this is the first time I've been kidnapped by a girl."

"That's not– I mean, I'm– I didn't…!" she spluttered, a beautifully bright blush forming on her cheeks. She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned at him. "You better hope it's the _last_ time!"

"If this is how it turns out, I wouldn't mind if you made a hobby of kidnapping me…" he joked.

Her blush deepened and she raised a fist. It made him smile. To him, she was the most beautiful girl in the world.

**Epilogue**

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?!?!?!?" a voice roared throughout the house, causing the children to stir and the Hallo's to activate. The voice did not sound female, but one could not exactly say that it was a male voice either. However, despite this, or maybe because of this, it was obvious who the owner of the raging voice was.

Lacus opened her eyes slowly. _What, indeed?_ she wondered to herself. It was wonderful to wake up in her own bed, knowing she was no longer in danger, but being awakened like this was… less than pleasant. Groggily, she wiped her eyes and sat up. Still feeling sleepy, she walked in the direction of the kitchen for a glass of milk. That always helped her wake up. Down the hall, she could see Cagalli waving something at Athrun like she meant to hit him with it.

"Ah, good morning, Miss Cagalli, Athrun!" she greeted the two.

"Morning! Morning!" Pink-chan echoed excitedly. Lacus smiled at her mechanical pet. It was good to have it by her side once more.

"Don't 'good morning' me!" Cagalli hollered, striding up to Lacus with footsteps pounding so violently that they threatened to make holes in the carpet. "How the hell do you explain _this_!?"

She shoved a newspaper in Lacus's face. The front page sported a huge colour printed picture of the photo taken of Lacus and Athrun together the day before. The heading read 'Famous couple blushes over _Berry Blush_ project', in big, bold letters.

"My!" Lacus exclaimed. "We came out good!" Cagalli balled her fist in the most aggravated manner. "Oh my, you are upset?"

Athrun slapped his forehead, and Cagalli proceeded to wake the children as she ranted rather loudly, and used words that rightfully should not have come from the lips of Orb's leader-to-be. Lacus went to get that glass of milk. With a small smile of mischief, she pondered the idea of getting her own camera and taking photography lessons.


End file.
